More than $23 million has already been spent demolishing buildings, moving underground utility lines, tearing up streets and laying the first part of the 3.6-mile track.

An additional $94 million has been obligated in project contracts.

During his victory speech Tuesday night, Mayor-elect John Cranley renewed his promise to ax the streetcar, saying it's too expensive.

Wednesday, Cranley said that he was told to expect a congratulatory call from the White House, and that he intended to ask permission during that call to reallocate some $44 million in federal streetcar funding to other projects, such as the I-71/MLK interchange project.

White House adviser Valerie Jarrett told Cranley she didn't know if that reallocation was possible.

"(The city) should immediately stop spending. They should not be ordering these cars to be built three weeks before the swearing-in," Cranley said emphatically. "I mean, seriously, look at who got elected yesterday."

In addition, some of the three new City Council members elected Tuesday have also voiced doubts on the project, eroding the narrow margin of supporters remaining on council.

"Six members of the council are adamantly opposed to spending more money on the streetcar and they were elected yesterday, so I don't think it's going to be a tough sell," Cranley said.

Stopping the streetcar would involve paying back millions of dollars in federal funding, paying portions of the outstanding contracts and ripping up track that's been already laid along Elm Street.

City officials also fear litigation from taxpayers and companies involved in the project. Cranley would have to get out of already signed contracts.

The city said Wednesday that "The Administration acts under the direction of a majority of Council and we have a professional responsibility to keep the project on budget and on time until we receive other direction from a majority of Council."

Cranley said the project should be stopped now, and that Tuesday's results show that the city's residents don't want this project to go forward.

Cranley received wide support from solid African-American neighborhoods like Bond Hill and Madisonville.

Laketa Cole, who is the new president of the Bond Hill Community Council, said people in her neighborhood felt left out and neglected.

"They didn't feel like the administration and the current council was listening to them," Cole told WLWT News 5.

Other voters said they saw Cranley's elections as a back-to-basics move.

Mark Quarry of the Board of Realtors said he anticipates Cranley will "Cut a lot of the fat out and get rid of non-essential services and just concentrate on core services, which is what a municipal government should be doing first and foremost."

Cranley said that if streetcar supporters want to take the idea to the polls again, he would not stand in their way.

Project Manager John Deatrick said the project would take more than canceling contracts to end.

"(There's) just a lot of work that would be involved in that," Deatrick said. "We'd have to pull at the tracks out and, believe me, they're extremely well-embedded."

City Manager Milton Dohoney's status is uncertain. Cranley said today he intends to meet with him next week to talk about a range of subjects.

Cranley made it clear Wednesday that he will support a police recruit class and a fire recruit class. He hopes brownouts can be gone by the end of his first term. He also wants to reverse the one-garbage-can policy recently instituted by the city.

He also said he intends to try to redo the parking deal that the current council passed earlier this year.

Streetcar construction began in February 2012 and is set to finish in 2016.

DAY. A NEW MAYOR AND A NEW COUNCIL MAJORITY .... ARE CLEARLY AGAINST CONTINUING TO BUILD IT. SO, HOW SOON COULD THEY PULL THE PLUG? AND HOW MUCH WILL THAT COST? WLWT NEWS 5'S JOHN LONDON... IS LIVE ALONG THE ROUTE WITH THE ANSWER. THEY GET SWORN IN EARLY NEXT MONTH. SO, POTENTIALLY NEXT MONTH. THE PROJECT EXECUTIVE TOLD US TODAY "NOTHING IS CERTAIN"... AS WORK CONTINUED HERE ON ELM STREET, WORK THAT MIGHT HAVE TO BE UNDONE. The Streetcar could be the symbol of John Cranley's election. He tapped into public anger about it to ride right over Roxanne by a 16% margin. What words does he have for Streetcar supporters? (John Cranley) ("I say thank you for loving our city and you've got a wonderful vision. Now, let's find an alternative.") But, the logistics of stopping it loom large. (John Deatrick - Project Executive) ("Just a lot of work that would be involved in that. We'd have to pull at the tracks out and, believe me, they're extremely well-embedded.") (chuckles) Work continued today. He'd have to get out of signed contracts. By the end of this month up to 10% of construction will be reached. Then, John Cranley gets sworn-in as the city's 69th Mayor. (John Cranley) ("They should immediately stop spending.") At his home this afternoon, the new Mayor-elect laid out his agenda. And while the administration issued a statement you can read on WLWT.com, saying work on the project would continue subject to the will of Council, it is clear the will of the new Council is not streetcar- friendly. (John Cranley) ("Look, this isn't an ideological thing for me. I don't, I don't, I don't relish stopping the streetcar. I don't say yay, yay, yay, we get to stop the streetcar. The fact is it's just not worth the money.") The main drivers of the streetcar story are either gone or going. Mayor Mallory is term- limited. Vice Mayor Qualls is defeated. Same for Councilwoman Laure Quinlivan. Cranley says he has made no decision about keeping the City Manager and will meet with him next week. While Elm Street may need to be put back together (John Deatrick) ("Standing here, I couldn't tell you what that would cost.") Cranley has his own repair job ahead of him to heal party sensitivities. (Tim Burke - Hamilton County Democratic Chairman) ("There is no question there are some wounds in this party that we're all going to have to work to heal. I think John is a smart enough politician to understand that.") NEW COUNCIL MEMBER KEVIN FLYNN, ONCE A STREETCAR SUPPORTER, SAID HE HOPES WORK ISN'T ACCELERATED... BEFORE THE NEW COUNCIL IS SWORN-IN. DAVID MANN, ALSO ELECTED LAST NIGHT, SAID HE BELIEVES WHEN YOU COMPARE THE COSTS OF STOPPING OR CONTINUING, STOPPING WILL BE THE WISEST OPTION. LIVE IN OVER-THE-RHINE, JOHN LONDON, WLWT NEWS FIVE. MAYOR-ELECT CRANLEY.... ALSO SAID TODAY.... HE WANTS A CHANGE IN THE "CULTURE" AT CITY HALL ... SAYING THERE WILL BE MORE TRANSPARENCY .... IN HIS